Combining Texts

Ideas for 'Confessions of a Philosopher', 'The Powers Metaphysics' and 'The Reality of Numbers'

unexpand these ideas     |    start again     |     choose another area for these texts

display all the ideas for this combination of texts


2 ideas

9. Objects / A. Existence of Objects / 1. Physical Objects
If objects are property bundles, the properties need combining powers [Williams,NE]
     Full Idea: If objects are bundles of properties …they must be robust enough to enter into building relations with one another such that they can form objects.
     From: Neil E. Williams (The Powers Metaphysics [2019], 01.5)
     A reaction: A very nice point. The Humean bundle view of objects just seems to take properties to be 'impressions' or verbal predicates, but they must have causal powers to be a grounding for ontology.
9. Objects / E. Objects over Time / 4. Four-Dimensionalism
Four-Dimensional is Perdurantism (temporal parts), plus Eternalism [Williams,NE]
     Full Idea: 'Perdurantism' is the view that objects persist by being composed of temporal parts. When it is commonly combined with the eternalist account of the ontology of time, the result is known as 'four-dimensionalism'.
     From: Neil E. Williams (The Powers Metaphysics [2019], 08.1)
     A reaction: At last, a clear account of the distinction between these two! They're both wrong. He says the result is the spatiotemporal 'worm' view (i.e. one temporal extended thing, rather than a collection of parts).